The Celestial Warrior
by ForeverChanging21
Summary: Our favorite team find out new mysteries in a city that had long since banned magic. Among those mysteries, they find a warrior sent to Earthland - a warrior who knows the answers to the disappearance of the dragons, how it relates to Layla Heartfilia, & the dangers that have yet to come. Follow the team as they battle new enemies & build new friendships. (My Wattpad is ERWritings)
1. Prologue

So this is my first Fairy Tail fic. I've written plenty of One-Shots for Fairy Tail but they've never had an actual storyline so this is going to be new and a bit of a challenge for me. I hope everyone enjoys the story but first I have a few things to say. This may not follow a lot of plotlines in the anime/manga from where it starts after the GMG.

 **Prologue: The City Falls**

The smoke coming from all around the city almost seemed to make it blend into the night, with the dark clouds overhead creating a sort of fog screen. The only evidence of the once beautiful city even existing was the bright light coming from the many fires spread throughout the city, each one glowing as brightly as the next, creating specks of light to the outside world. In the middle of the burning city stood a beautiful church, rising tall amongst the buildings, the fire set to it having been the last, and therefore the brightest. It could have all been prevented. But at what cost?

"Mommy? Sissy? Where are you?" A child, no more than five years old, was wandering the inflamed city with tears streaking down her dirt-covered cheeks. "Hello? Mommy! Sissy -" Her cries were interrupted by spouts of coughing that shook her tiny body violently. The smoke was going to kill the girl at this rate. Her blonde hair, once having been the color of a golden necklace you'd see in a shop, was matted with dirt, smoke, and blood.

"Harley! I'm over here!" Coughing, the face of the voice appeared through the thick smoke, looking just as dirty as the little girl, if not more so. "I told you to stay in the shelter, why are you out here?" The older girl asked, coughing again as she got closer to the young child, gracefully picking the girl up. From what she had been able to tell from a quick scope of the town, there were no other survivors. Only her and the young girl, her little sister Harley.

"Mommy won't wake up! I wanted to find you to go wake her up so we can leave!" Harley replied, her tiny voice laced with fear and concern for their mother. The older girl was already aware of the situation. Their mother had died. But how in the world could she tell that to her baby sister, who already looked frightened out of her mind as it was, her big sky blue eyes releasing the dam of tears that aided in cleaning off a fraction of the dirt and grime that had built up on her young features.

Scanning the area, the young teenager began to make her way through the smoke, using her scarf to shield her sister from the smoke as best as she could. It was hard to make out anything in the well-sized city of Airedella. She couldn't even see the bakery around the corner that she had just gone to that morning with Harley to have breakfast before they had began their morning chores at their home with their mother. Getting out of the city at this point seemed to be futile, though with the tiny bits of light that could barely be seen through all of the smoke it was clear that the morning was coming.

"Just hang in there Harley. We'll make it out." The girl promises her little sister, clutching the girl closely to her chest as she began to move faster through the smoke in order to find some kind of shelter. They needed to get out of the smoke, if only for a couple of hours. If it didn't start to clear up, they'd both die.

"Big Sis... can you show me your magic again?" Harley asked the older girl, whose name was Kay, while peeking up at her from the scarf that was covering her tiny mouth and nose.

An apologetic expression formed on Kay's face as she looked down at the little girl briefly. "I'm sorry Lele. I'm all out of magic energy right now. Maybe later, okay?" She promised as she continued on her way through the streets, unsure of where she was going, feeling completely and utterly lost and confused. Where were they? Was the smoke ever going to clear up? Turning her head to the side, Kay began to cough, head feeling dizzy. Not wanting to accidentally drop Harley, the teen set her sister down on her feet. "Can you walk for a little while, Lele?" She asked, worry evident in her dirtied features, green-blue eyes showing so many emotions it was hard for Kay herself to keep up with.

Able to tell how exhausted her older sister was, Harley nodded her head and smiled, but it was covered by the scarf that was protecting her from the brunt of the smoke's damage. "I can walk Sissy! I promise!" She was still scared, but she didn't want her sister to worry more than she already was. Hand in hand, the two sisters began to walk through the streets together, Harley's free hand holding onto the scarf to keep her nose and mouth covered, while Kay coughed up a storm from inhaling so much smoke. Up ahead, there was a building that couldn't be identified through the thick grog, but Kay began to usher Harley towards the building in order to take cover.

Once inside, Kay immediately scanned the surroundings for any immediate threats, body tense and trembling with effort. Deeming the place safe, Kay nodded and collapsed onto the floor, sighing in relief from not having to be on her worn feet anymore. Next to her, Harley curled up and snuggled up close to her sister, using her lap as a pillow. Watching the younger girl sleep brought comfort to Kay as she restlessly watched their surroundings to make sure they would be temporarily safe. That feeling of safety did not last as the building suddenly began to rumble, stones starting to fall from the already cracking ceiling. Kay didn't notice until a couple of bigger pieces of stone began to hit the floor around her, and with wide eyes the girl snatched up a sleeping Harley in her arms and began to make for the exit. It was too late...

The house came down on top of the two girls, effectively knocking them unconscious...


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter One:**

An exasperated sigh left the mouth of the blonde celestial mage as she made eye contact with her hot-headed partner. "Honestly, Natsu. I don't know what I'm going to do with you. There is absolutely no way that I am going on that mission with you." They'd been arguing for a good ten minutes about the issue of their next mission. Technically it was the mission of the entire team; Natsu, Happy, Gray, Erza, Wendy, Carla, and herself, Lucy. However, Lucy and Natsu had the amazing opportunity to choose the request this time, and they just couldn't make up their minds. Or rather, Lucy declined every single job that Natsu had chosen – and with good reason!

The first job that Natsu wanted to take, first of all, didn't pay enough to split five ways (seven if you included the two exceeds) and he only wanted to take it because it called for destroying a building. The last time Lucy had to deal with construction workers was when they were rebuilding the guild hall and Erza had taken charge – she definitely did not need the red headed knight screaming in her ear to build something. And the _second_ job that Natsu wanted to take paid enough, but it involved a long journey that Natsu probably thought they'd travel on foot for (not happening) so she was just being courteous to her teammate's disability when it came to transportation by refusing to do it – even if it _would_ pay next month's rent as well as this month's rent.

"Awe c'mon, Luce. It pays well, it's not too far, and if we destroy stuff they will still pay us. It's perfect!" Natsu insisted, holding out the request to her while he continued his attempt at convincing his partner to go along with the job. It sounded well enough, I mean c'mon being able to destroy stuff _and_ get paid if it happened? Yet again, the idiot was forgetting something. They needed a mage who could reverse a magical spell and none of their teammates were capable of that ability.

Another sigh escaped Lucy's lips as she turned her back on her partner and scanned the request board, looking for something that would be good. Nothing seemed to be standing out to her that they could do as a large group. _Babysitter, getting rid of a Vulcan, capturing a runaway child...gosh none of these will – wait!_ A request caught Lucy's eye that so far looked like it would be a fairly good request. Reaching up, the celestial mage pulled the request off of the board and scanned it from top to bottom, not missing a single detail. Turning to Natsu, Lucy held it out to him.

"Here. We should do this one. It's simple enough and pays well. Says that there has been multiple threats and attacks on the city of Airedella by a band of rogue wizards. Sounds just like our kind of job and it pays enough that even if we split it with five more people I could still pay my rent!" Of course that was Lucy's favorite part, but she was slightly unnerved. Just how powerful were these mages if the reward for their capture was so high? And wasn't Airedella the city of the rich in Fiore, where everyone could pay themselves out of just about anything they had fallen into? And she heard they were a very anti-magic kind of city ever since an accident that had happened seven years ago that had frightened the town into seclusion and a life of no magic. So why would they be turning to wizards for help? It just didn't make any sense to the holder wizard.

Natsu's dark eyes scanned the request quickly and he grinned at Lucy excitedly. "This one's perfect! Beating up bad guys and having enough money to eat all the food I want has me fired up!" With his free hand, Natsu balled his fist and punched into the air above his head, a look in his eyes that Lucy knew all too well.

"Yeah, yeah. C'mon fireball, let's get this back to our team." Lucy told Natsu as she takes the request from his hands before he accidentally got so excited and burnt the request on accident. She couldn't allow that to happen to such a rare and life-saving quest. Her rent was coming up soon and she really needed to pay it off.

Erza's expression didn't change as she read over the request, making Lucy fidget a little out of nerves. She had gotten quite use to the older mage, but that didn't make her any less terrifying – especially since she had a thing for snapping at people for being fools. Eventually the scarlet haired female nodded her head and met Lucy's nervous look with a calm, steady one. "This will suffice. Everyone prepare to leave for Airedella in one hour. We must get there as soon as possible." She commanded, her voice sure and challenging her team to try and complain about her decision. Of course anyone with a brain knew that was a horrible idea, so no one dared speak a word.

"Then the matter is settled." Erza said, nodding before she walked out of the guild hall, probably going to Fairy Hills in order to pack what would most likely be a wagon that was twice her size in every sense of the word. The scary wizard was never questioned even if she never even used half of what she brought.

The rest of the team went their separate ways to their own homes to pack as well, Lucy having been the second one to leave in hopes of avoiding the wrath of Erza in case she had to wash any dirty laundry before she left. She still needed to write a letter to her mother, which she would barely have time for when she got there and began to get everything together. Even as she packed though, Lucy had an uneasy feeling about the mission even if she had been the one to choose it. Something bad either had happened or was going to happen. Not knowing which one was really creeping the blonde mage out, though she tried to ignore her silly fears.

She just finished stuffing one last t-shirt into the suitcase when a loud voice from behind her caused her to jump in her skin and spin around, almost falling back from the force of her turn. "Natsu! What are you doing in my room!" Lucy shrieked, instantly glaring at him for having scared the daylights out of her. Of course, she'd die before she admitted that to the mischievous dragon slayer who absolutely adored sneaking into her room through the window. She had bought a lock for it once. The idiot melted the lock and just slipped right on in as if it were a small rock in his path. Needless to say Lucy had been shocked and furious when she found him in her bed that next morning.

"Just coming to check on you, Luce. Don't kick me!" Natsu replied, holding his hands up in a defensive position and interrupting Lucy's memory of the time she'd bought a lock for her window like a naïve girl believing that it would work. Without a moment of awkward silence there was none other than the little blue furball of annoyance right by his side, sitting on his head.

"Aye. Natsu was worried because you were taking so long." The blue cat informed the blonde, and then giggled behind a paw. "He liiiiiiikes you." He chanted, resulting in Natsu's hands reaching up to swat at the cat who was already in the air while Natsu's frantic hands slapped down on his own head, causing Lucy to burst into laughter at how idiotic the two were being.

"Why are you laughing? You're so weird, Luce." Natsu sounded extremely confused by Lucy's laughter, as did the flying blue exceed who was slowly making his way over to Lucy as if he were more safe with her than he would be by his best friend. Rolling her brown eyes, Lucy pushed Happy away from her and just shook her head with a sigh, turning her back to her pink haired friend in order to zip up her suitcase and head to their usual meeting place at the train station. Without another interruption from Natsu, she was able to change into a more comfortable outfit – something just short of sweats and a t-shirt – for travel and finish writing her letter to her mother. She'd long stopped caring if Natsu was around when she wrote the letter and stuffed it in a box full of all of her other letters. He knew about her mother. He knew about how she wrote to her on a daily basis to tell her what was going on in her life currently. It was no secret anymore and she had slowly begun to accept that her nakama knew what had once been a huge secret of her life.

"Geez Luce, you take forever." Natsu complained, his body sprawled out across her bed, hands laced behind his head in a comfortable position. He had been waiting for her to get ready for half an hour and they needed to be at the train station as soon as possible. Happy hadn't been kidding during the Grand Magic Games when he said it was a lie and that women always took forever to get ready. His comment on how long she was taking didn't go unnoticed and in turn he had one of Lucy's flip flops thrown at him, which hit him square in the face since his eyes were closed and he hadn't really been paying attention to what Lucy was doing. He only knew she was taking forever because they were still at her house and he could hear her mumbling to herself about what she needed to get done before she left. It was kind of adorable, if he were being honest.

With a roll of her eyes, Lucy put up the last item to ensure that her house would be clean and orderly when she came back to it before she turned her attention to the impatient boy. Happy had left a while ago to meet with Wendy and Carla – a habit that hadn't gone unnoticed by either teenager – so it was only the two of them. "I'm done, Natsu. Do you even have all of your things together?" Lucy accused the boy who had been complaining non-stop about how long she was taking to get ready for their job.

"'Course I do!" Natsu defended himself, peeling his eyes open and standing up, stretching out his sleepy muscles dramatically as if to show Lucy that she had indeed taken forever. "Now let's go, Luce!" Natsu begged, pleading with her and obviously not going to go ahead without her. Why would he do something like that? It'd be no fun!

Lucy let out an audible sigh and grabbed her suitcase before making her way towards the door, not even bothering to glance behind her and knowing Natsu and Happy more likely than not already jumped out of her window like the idiots they were. "Honestly, I don't know what I am going to do with those two." She mumbled under her breath as she locked her door behind her and then made her way to where Natsu and Happy were waiting a little ways ahead. The two were being laid back though, and Lucy smiled to herself a little. After the Grand Magic Games and the seven year gap she knew it was hard for everyone to adjust back to their old lives. Some of their friends had aged seven years older than them. Lucy herself should be about twenty-five but she was only eighteen in appearance. And the Grand Magic Games had been a way of making all of those long years of being away up to those who had been stuck back in Magnolia. Natsu sure had fought hard. And if Lucy hadn't been taken by the royal palace she would have loved to see how Natsu would have fought in the team battle. No one would have beaten him. She was sure of it, because she believed in Natsu. Her faith in Natsu and his ability to win was as sure and unwavering as Natsu's loyalty to his nakama.

"Hurry up, Lucy! You're so slow!" Natsu complained as he waited on her.

"Shuddup, Natsu!" She yelled back, walking a little faster anyways. The three made their way towards the train station, Natsu mumbling complaints about having to ride on a train the entire way there. They were the last ones to arrive as per usual but no one seemed to be upset. Instead, Erza went right into a lecture about their plan once they reached the city. By now she had started to give her plans before they got onto the train so that she didn't have to yell at Natsu for being confused when they arrived since he always got motion sickness. They all boarded the train – not without Erza scaring some sense into and arguing Natsu and Gray – and took their seats. Wendy and Erza sat together, chatting amongst themselves, while Gray sat a little ways off, staring out of the window. Lucy was seated with Natsu's head on her lap, her fingers running through his hair to help soothe the sickness that he felt. She had learned it seemed to help him when she played with his soft pink hair. When she first did it, she had been surprised at how soft his spiky pink hair actually was. Now though, she sought comfort in running her fingers through the soft tendrils of Natsu's pink hair. She stared out of the window, taking in the scenery and thinking about their journey. _It just doesn't make any sense. Airedella isn't the type of city to ask wizards for help. And Mirajane said they specifically asked Fairy Tail and we're not known for leaving things intact. These guys we're facing must be pretty dangerous then._ She looked around at her teammates before smiling a bit to herself. _But nothing can stop us. We're Fairy Tail's strongest team!_

Before she knew it, Lucy was waking up because of a yelling Natsu and a metal grip on her shoulder shaking her awake. She blinked back sleep and realized the train had stopped, and the yelling was Natsu's cry of joy for the motion having stopped. A smile formed on her lips for a moment, but one look at Erza's face and it disappeared. "We don't have time to wait. We must hurry. The town is under attack!" Erza spoke and Lucy immediately jumped to her feet and nodded, expression serious. "We will split up. Natsu and Lucy, you two go handle the mages. Gray and I will go see if we can find any survivors and take down whoever we can along the way. Wendy and Carla, you two stay here at the station. We will send the survivors your way." The metal clad wizard ordered, an arm slicing through the air and silently telling everyone to head out. Everyone nodded and then headed in different directions.

Lucy couldn't believe what she was seeing. The entire city was falling apart. Fires everywhere, buildings all around them collapsing and crumbling. "Mages did this?" She wondered aloud as she walked next to Natsu, who was eating the fires as they passed them by. "This is terrible.." She murmured to herself as she continued on through the city. Happy was flying high above them scouting for any mages who might still be attacking the defenseless city.

"Yeah..." Natsu replied, not laughing either. They had passed several bodies already of all different types; women, men, teenagers, children, even babies and toddlers. This was the work of true monsters and Natsu was going to make them pay.

Meanwhile, Gray and Erza were scouting out the city looking for any survivors. They passed plenty of fallen bodies, but none of them seemed to be alive. Countless bodies were found in the ruins of buildings and houses, but there weren't any people who were breathing – not even the slightest. Most of them looked to have been killed by magic attacks or from bleeding out, others were crushed underneath the ruins of homes and shops. At her sides, Erza's hands clenched into fists. Monsters. Whoever did this were true monsters. The red haired wizard spotted a collapsed building nearby and saw a lifeless form. "Gray over here!" She headed in that direction, Gray following behind her. Erza removed the debris from the fallen girl who looked to be only a few years younger than her in appearance, but she was older than Wendy. About fifteen or sixteen. Erza reached down and put her armor next to her nose. "She's breathing!" She exclaimed. One survivor. "Gray help me lift her." She demanded, and the ice-make wizard was at her side, gently lifting up the girl and getting her comfortable in Erza's arms before they gasped in shock. Underneath the teenager was a little girl, who was awake and trembling, staring up at the two with wide eyes.

"Don't hurt her!" She whimpered out, body shaking.

"She's just a kid." Gray said, amazed. He looked over at the teenage girl and mentally applauded her. Not many people who didn't use magic would sacrifice their own life for that of someone else, but whatever she had done had certainly saved this little girl. She was badly beaten and the child looked fairly torn up herself, but they were both alive somehow. "We need to get them to Wendy and Carla." Gray said to Erza before looking at the little girl. He wasn't like Natsu. He wasn't the best with kids but he had to try. The black haired male looked down at her and smiled gently. "Hey, we're here to help you. I'm Gray and this is my guildmate Erza." The little girl wasn't looking at his face though. She was staring at his chest. He looked down and realized he was shirtless. Great! He lost his clothes in front of a little girl!

"You're from Fairy Tail!" The little girl exclaimed, eyes wide and a smile forming on her lips. There was a scarf on her body that was covered in ash, and Gray assumed she had used it to take cover from all of the smoke. But it was too big to fit her. The older one must have given it to her.

"Yeah. We're wizards from the gui-" He got cut off when the little girl threw herself at him and wrapped her small arms around his neck. She wasn't as beaten up as the older girl. Actually, aside form the dirt, she didn't look to be injured at all. So how the heck was the older girl still alive? She didn't have any magical energy coming from her body, so she wasn't a wizard. Right now wasn't the time to wonder about them though. He made eye contact with Erza and she nodded, to which he returned the nod knowing what she meant. They silently made their way back to the train station where Wendy and Carla were waiting.

"Is this it?" Wendy asked, eyes wide in horror.

Erza nodded, "I'm afraid so. We are going back out to look for any more survivors, but it's not looking promising."

Gray tried to detach the little girl from him so she could get checked out, but she wouldn't let go. "Gray-sama! I'm scared!" The little girl reminded him of Juvia in a way, but a lot more adorable and less easy to say no to. He looked at Erza who simply chuckled a little.

"Very well. Gray, you stay here and help Wendy. Carla, come with me. If you look at the city from the sky you could see better than I could if there are survivors." Erza said and the little girl giggled happily.

Carla and Erza both left, leaving Gray with a clingy child and Wendy with a passed out teenager. The young dragon slayer was putting all of her focus on healing the wounds of the girl, but she wasn't waking up. Gray ended up sitting down with the child on his lap, poking his guildmark and then counting his abs before grinning up at him and giggling. He couldn't help but smile back. Even with all of the dirt covering her, she was rather adorable. "Gray-sama, is she gonna help my sissy feel better?" The child asked hopefully.

"She'll do her best." Gray replied with a nod.

"Thank you, Gray-sama! You saved my sissy!" She cried and threw her arms around the ice-make mage again. She then settled herself onto his lap once more, looking up at him. "Will you show me your magic, Gray-sama? Magic isn't allowed here so I don't get to see it often." She pleaded, her light blue eyes staring into Gray's darker ones.

"Uh, yeah. Sure." Gray said a little awkwardly before he held out his hands, one hand flat and facing the sky while the other sat on top in a fist. He concentrated his magic and created a small Fairy Tail guildmark, much like he had when he was on the train and showed Lucy his magic. The small child reacted similarly as his blonde guildmate, but much more excited. She gasped in awe and her tiny hands reached out to take the ice guildmark in her hands. It was just about the right size to fill both of her small hands. She giggled and smiled up at Gray with a joy that surprised him. Even though she was excited, Gray noticed how careful she was with the mark, clutching onto it gently and pulling it close to her chest in excitement. The rumors had been true, then. Magic really had been outcast from Airedella. And that was why they had no defense against the mages who attacked them.

"It's so pretty!" The little girl exclaimed happily, laughing.

"H-Harley... I-Is that you?" The girl Wendy was treating slowly opened her eyes, trying to sit up and gasping from the pain, falling back down into a laying position. Immediately the small girl stopped giggling and went wide-eyed, quickly crawling off of Gray's lap and over to the injured girl.

"Sissy! You're awake! Gray-sama saved us, sissy!" She cheered happily and then she hugged her sister only for the girl to inhale sharply from the pain. Gray saw how pure the child's intentions were, but she was hurting her sister. He quickly moved forward to gently pry her off of the girl.

"C'mon, we gotta let her rest. Harley, is it?" He said reassuringly, gently pulling the girl back into his lap but staying close to her sister so that she wouldn't worry about her. The two certainly shared a bond. It reminded him of his guild. If they knew magic they would fit right in. The younger one could certainly learn, as could the girl, but it would take years for them to practice magic and get good enough to support themselves, and without any survivors other than them, who would be able to take care of them?

"Oh?" Harley stopped moving and looked up at Gray curiously before breaking out into a smile again. "Yeah! I'm Harley!" She giggled once more. "That's my big sissy, Kay! There were these mean wizards. They were trying to hurt us.. so sissy fought them and hid me. Mommy wouldn't wake up and sissy said we had to leave her behind.. and then the building fell on us... It was scary.." Harley trembled a little, her smile having left her face. A single tear slipped down her cheek and Gray almost panicked, not knowing how to handle a crying child. But then she looked up at him and smiled. "But then you saved us, Gray-sama! Thank you so much!"

Footsteps approached, and Gray looked up to see the rest of their team. Erza, Lucy, Natsu, and Happy. Erza had five men in her arms and Natsu had three whilst Lucy had another two and was dragging them by her whip. Natsu looked pleased, smiling and grinning like a maniac, only a few scratches here and there, and Lucy looked more beaten up than the rest of them. Gray could only assume the men got perverted with her and Natsu took them all out. It was obvious for the guild that Lucy was someone Natsu got protective over. "That is all of them. An entire Dark Guild had attacked this city. We didn't find anymore survivors. They are the only ones. Wendy, we'll need you to continue to heal her on the train ride home. Natsu and Lucy, you two tie them up and contact the guild. Gray -" Erza looked to the ice-make wizard about to order him to do something when she saw the little girl sitting atop his shoulders and giggling whilst playing with his hair. She sighed a little, "Keep her distracted."

"So does this mean we don't get paid?" Lucy's tone took on a hybrid of a whine and a complain all in one. It wasn't a bad assumption though. If the only two left alive were the two children, that meant those who could actually pay them were dead. Had it all happening this morning? They had taken the request too late. Hundreds of innocent people were wiped out. But Lucy's rent was coming up soon. And she didn't know if she had the energy to go on another job soon enough to pay it.

"Awe c'mon, Luce. Lighten up. We'll just take another job when we get back and pay your rent." Natsu said cheerfully as he dropped the guys in his arms carelessly.

One of the wizards that Erza had dropped awoke, looking around tiredly. He moaned a little, holding his head a bit. Immediately the red haired wizard glared at him, a sword at his throat. "Tell me why you attacked this city." She demanded, causing the guy to cry out in fear.

"W-we were p-paid to destroy the city. T-they wanted the head of the Reaper. They told us we could find them in the city and paid us a lot to burn it down to make sure the Reaper was dead." He sputtered out, wide eyed. He was scared, but it mainly had to deal with the knife to his throat. Once the knife was put away he let out a relieved breath of air. But his eyes settled on the body of the girl being healed and he let out a cry, jumping to his feet and into the arms of the warrior-like mage, starting to cry like a baby. "I-it's her! The Reaper! S-She's alive! Oh God save us all!" Erza raised a brow when she looked at the source of his fear. She sighed and dropped him before knocking him out and looking at her guildmates.

"Wait a minute... I've heard of the Reaper before.." Lucy murmured. "A few months before we went to Tenrou Island. When Airedella stopped allowing magic. It was because of a wizard called The Reaper, or more widely known as The Angel of Death. Most brushed it aside as a folktale that was told to draw people in, trying to find the mysterious mage in Airedella. But then one day the mage snapped and destroyed half of the town. But no one ever knew their identity and after the attack they couldn't sense their magic energy. Even the Magic Council looked into it. There is no way this little girl is that mage." Lucy declared. "But then why was he so afraid?" She wondered, looking at the passed out girl on the ground. She looked to be about fifteen or sixteen, if she had been that mage then she had only been nine or eight when that attack happened. There is no way she could be who the mage claimed her to be.

"Let's get home, and you can tell us more about this history or Airedella when we get back to the guild." Erza said.

"What is going to happen to them?" Lucy asked, looking at the two girls.

"They'll be coming with us. One is severely wounded, and the other is her little sister, no more than a child." Erza replied. No one questioned her, and everyone nodded a little.

"Oh! I get to go to Fairy Tail! Yay!" Harley squealed from Gray's shoulders, leaning forward to look into his face. "Did you hear that Gray-sama? I get to go with you!" She smiled happily at the mage she had instantly attached herself to.


	3. Chapter 2

Hey y'all! I love you and I want to thank you for reading my story! So far it might seem like it's developing a little too fast or too slow and it's kind of sucky, but I am trying to find the pace I want and set it right now and it's not exactly easy..

So a few things:

Things may not happen in the way you think they will or things in the anime may change or may not happen at all.

Please forgive me for any out of character personalities – I am trying my hardest I swear.

I don't grammar check these after I type them so if anyone wants to volunteer to be my grammar checker I will give you the credit you deserve for doing so.

If you have any ideas or thoughts on what may happen, please, leave a review!

* * *

 **Chapter 2: Just the Newbies**

"So... uh.. What's with the little girl?" Wakaba asked, blinking as he stared at the child clinging onto Gray's arm.

"I'm not little! I'm a big girl!" Said young girl had heard Wakaba and immediately jumped to her own defense. She hadn't even had the chance to get clean yet because they couldn't get her off of Gray. They had been meaning to get her cleaned up and into a new change of clothes while Wendy and Porlyusica were in the infirmary working on healing the sister. However, the child had other ideas and would not let go of Gray for the life of her. Not even sweet Mirajane could soothe the girl to let go of the ice-make wizard. And he was itching to throw a punch at Natsu, who was taunting him, but he couldn't say anything because anything he said that wasn't nice he got scolded for by the little girl and whacked on the head like a child. Natsu called Gray an ice princess and Gray fumed, but from his back Harley poked her head up. "That's not a nice thing to call Gray-sama! Stop being mean!" She threw the toy that Mira had given her at Natsu and pouted.

"Looks like you've got a little bodyguard, Gray." Cana chuckled from where she sat on a nearby table, a barrel of alcohol in her hands. "And a cute one at that."

Erza looked at Wakaba. "She is one of the only two survivors in the whole city of Airedella. The rest of the people were slaughtered either by the mages, collapsed buildings, or the smoke from all the fire." She replied, staring at the little girl who was on Gray's back, comfortably resting there like a monkey. "Her name is Harley. She took a special liking to Gray almost immediately and since her rescue we haven't been able to get her to let go of him." She explained and Wakaba chuckled a little bit and glanced over at the two.

"Yeah other than Juvia I don't think I've ever seen a girl so attached to Gray." The smoker said as he let out another low laugh. It really was something to see Gray struggling to not blow up on Natsu because of the little girl crawling all over him and not letting him go. She started screaming bloody murder and crying whenever anyone tried to detach her.

"Gray-sama why haven't you gotten rid of this love rival!" The voice of an overly jealous water mage cried out as she came out from hiding behind a pillar. She waved her arms about, causing everyone in the guild to roll her eyes at her jealousy over a child. "I will not stand for this any longer!" Juvia grabbed onto the child and began pulling on her, trying to get her off of Gray.

"Waaaaa! Gray-sama help me!" The child cried out, holding onto Gray for dear life and kicking her legs at Juvia.

"Come back! You're not fully recovered yet!" Wendy cried out.

The entire guild fell silent – except for the crying of Harley and the complaints of Juvia – when someone began walking back through the guild. The girl they had seen earlier who had been knocked out and bruised. She didn't look the same at all though. Gone were the bruises and dirt. Underneath the dirt and grime that she had been covered in was a beautiful young girl, with flowing brown hair and stunning green eyes. "Harley, why must you cause such a fuss?" She spoke for the first time, causing even Juvia and Harley to stop their nonsense. Her voice was soft and sweet, something that seemed to fit her appearance.

"SISSY!" Harley squealed and kicked Juvia in the face, effectively getting her to let go before she immediately released her hold on Gray to slide to the floor and run at her sister. She laughed happily as she jumped into the arms of her older sister and hugged her tightly. "You're awake, sissy!"

"Of course I am awake, Lele. And I am not surprised to see that I've awaken to you crying. Is something wrong?" She asked worriedly, setting Harley down and crouching before her so that they were eye level. The mother-like way that the teenager handled the situation was rather surprising to the guild, but then again, none of them had ever seen her actually awake. She reached up to wipe away the tears from Harley's face and she offered her a smile. "You shouldn't be crying, Lele. I told you we would be okay, didn't I?"

"You did..." Harley nodded her head slowly and then she sniffled a bit before she smiled. "We're at Fairy Tail, sissy! The guild you told me stories about! We're here! And Gray-sama saved us!" She grabbed her sister's hand and started to drag her over to her new bestfriend who was busy arguing with Natsu about finding it weak that he had only taunted him when he couldn't fight because he had a little kid crawling on him. "Gray-sama! Gray-sama!" The little girl tugged on his pant leg, but the sudden stop caused the older girl to crash right into the icemage, effectively knocking both of them over and onto the ground.

Gray ended up underneath the teenage girl, whose green eyes widened in horror. "Oh my gosh! I am so sorry!" She apologized immediately and began to scramble to get to her feet, only to slip and fall back on top of Gray. Her cheeks heated up even more and she tried to get up again. Once she got to her feet she held out her hand to help the ice mage up. "Gomenasai." She bit her bottom lip worriedly, hoping she didn't upset the boy. He took her outstretched hand and got to his feet, and she scanned his face for any signs of anger. She wasn't entirely sure how she got where she was, or why she was in a guildhall, but she knew one thing:

She was surprised.

Harley hadn't ever been so happy towards men. Her own father had abused her causing her to fear and shake in sight of men. And even now Kay could see that Harley was glancing nervously around at the other males in the place, but this black haired wizard seemed to be the only exception she had ever seen. How long had it taken for Harley to open up to him? What had he done? Was it some kind of spell? She wasn't sure. In fact, she was worried. They could sense magical energy, and hers was slowly starting to be restored. This wasn't good. She needed some kind of cloaking device. She could sense how powerful all of the mages around her were, but that didn't ease her worry. She couldn't be known as a wizard. She'd be imprisoned if she were ever found out. But she needed to stay with Harley to keep her safe and sound. "Sissy, running into Gray-sama isn't nice. You knocked him over!" Harley pointed of her tiny fingers at Kay as if scolding her, causing Kay to let out a small laugh.

"I know, Harley. I'm sorry." She told her little sister, who giggled again and wrapped her arms around her legs.

"I'm glad you're awake sissy."

"Yeah I am too." She glanced around, feeling a little uncomfortable at all the attention she was receiving. She use to get attention all the time but not like this. It had been looks of disgust and hatred, fear and criticism. Not the curiously amused expressions around her. Either way, attention was attention and it was frightening for the girl. Without thinking, Kay ducked behind the shirtless mage she had just fallen on and his behind him, her small hands resting against his muscular back, trembling slightly.

"Are you alright, miss?" The wizard Harley had called 'Gray-sama' spoke, turning around to look at Kay, not having realized how close she was when her hands were on his chest. Gray had to gulp when the girl looked up at him through her lashes, her cheeks flushed and her bottom lip trapped between her teeth – a gesture he mentally noted she did often, and it seemed to be mostly when she was nervous. The expression had him stunned for a moment, and he found the words he had been about to say lost before he quickly regained his composure. "You've got nothin' to be afraid of. And you're not fully healed yet, so you should get back into the infirmary." He said a little awkwardly.

"Hmm?" Kay blinked for a moment, having gotten a little lost. Her eyes glanced down to where her hands were touching smooth bare skin and then widened, darkening again. "Oh!" She gasped, jumping backwards and losing her balance once more. Gray caught her and helped her get steady again. "R-Right.. I-I just wanted to check on Lele..." An unsteady laugh left the lips of the girl, who then looked at her sister and then nodded. "She's all good. Yeah.. S-So I'll j-just go." She turned around and walked as fast as she could over to Wendy, who immediately began to usher her back to the infirmary.

Inside the infirmary, Wendy began to use her healing magic again, doing her best to help Kay. She noticed something strange about the girl she was helping, but she didn't say anything about it. It was just that there was something off about the girl. Her body was healing faster than her magic or Porlyusica's was suppose to heal. Kay should have been unable to even move, none-the-less get up and practically run through the guild hall to find her little sister. Something was off about the girl. What, exactly, Wendy knew not. "So you're a wizard?" Wendy asked, looking at her. Kay had explained to her that all of her magical energy had been drained because she had tried to save her family. "I thought Airedella didn't allow magic users, though?"

"It doesn't. I kept a cloaking necklace on, but one of the rogue wizards pulled it off of me because it was worth a lot, and the people in my town were more scared than ever since I had been there the entire time and they didn't realize it." Kay admitted. She didn't feel any pain anymore, but she didn't want to tell that to Wendy because it was obvious her wounds had been serious.

"What kind of magic do you use?" Wendy asked.

Kay tensed, looking away from Wendy for a moment. What kind of magic did she use? Nothing Wendy would know of. Nothing anyone would know of except for maybe Master Makarov. Was she really allowed to tell them? Would she and Harley be safe if she told them? Looking up at Wendy, the nervous girl shrugged her shoulders a little. "I'm not sure. I taught it to myself. I didn't have anyone teach me, so no one told me." That wasn't a lie, but it wasn't exactly the truth either.

"Oh? Well maybe we can help you figure it out!" Wendy offered, smiling at her.

"Yeah... maybe." Kay replied.

It wasn't long after that when it happened. A couple weeks after Kay was healed and given her Fairy Tail mark, her and Harley officially being accepted into the guild. Harley was learning magic from everyone around her, from Cana's card magic to Mirajane's transformation magic. Even Gray and Natsu were pitching in and teaching her a few tricks here and there. While Kay preferred to keep to herself, practice her magic in secret. But it wasn't long until she started having nightmares. Horrible, sleep-depriving nightmares that Kay would wake up from, crying. And sometimes she had dreams of messages. Someone coming to her to ask her for help. But who? And what help? She couldn't tell anyone. She was too scared to. What would she do? She wasn't sure.


	4. Chapter 3

**Hey guys I'm a bit behind in the updating area, but I have good reason I promise! Between school starting up again and trying to figure out the right path that I want this story to take (I know like the basic outline, but the details and how to get there without it being a rough transition are what I am working on) so it might take a while for me to update. I'd love to hear your ideas and thoughts though!**

 **I do not own Fairy Tail or the characters. I do own Harley and Kay though... I guess.**

 **Harley: You don't own us you big meanie! *throws toy at me*** **Me: *Dodges, barely* Okay okay! I don't own you!**

 **Kay: Lele, it's not nice to throw things at people. Especially not author-chan.**

 **Me: Awe thanks Kay, you're so sweet.**

 **Gray: Can we get to the story already? Sheesh.**

 **Me: Sorry, sorry! *holds up hands in defense* Anyways, sorry for the long wait, I hope this can clear a few things up (kind of) and make things start to be less boring and slowly getting into the main plotline. Please review! I love reading them (constructive criticism is welcome). Good or bad reviews are welcome. Good boosts confidence. Bad can help me see mistakes or try to correct things to make me become a better writer. Anyways, enjoy this chapter! (by the way it may seem short *maybe* but it is like 8 pages on my officewriter where I write it).**

* * *

 **Chapter 3: The Message**

It was another day at Fairy Tail, Natsu was standing at the request board with Lucy and Happy trying to convince her to go on a crazy mission that the blonde had no intentions of going on, Erza was eating her strawberry cheesecake talking to Wendy about the latest armor she had purchased (much to the poor dragonslayer's horror), Mira continued to wait on everybody in the guildhall, and overall the entirety of the guild was a normal day.

Kay was getting use to the guild life, having spent a couple of weeks there. She was constantly wearing a black cape with a silver Fairy Tail emblem embedded on the back, concealing her magical energy – per Makarov's request, before her magical energy had gotten even to half-strength. While the black color might seem too hot for the bright, sunny days ahead, the cape had magical abilities that kept her cool when it was hot, and warm when she was in cold climates. It was the perfect cape, and she especially loved the hood which allowed her to hide her face; something she tended to do quite often.

"I'm gonna do it this time!" Harley declared from a few tables away, sitting next to Cana – who was more or less teaching her how to use card magic while she drank.

A small smile crept onto Kay's face as she watched her little sister, who had been hopping around and learning different types of magic since they joined the guild. She had started with Gray, but upon deciding that she didn't have enough time to keep dragging Kay with them to Mt. Hakobe on a daily basis, she had decided on learning his magic last – even if it was the one she clearly wanted to learn the most. She'd practiced with Mira a bit, but during the hours that the barmaid worked, she usually just sat with Cana trying to use the cards. Sometimes she would give up altogether and just play with Happy – who was more than kind enough to fly her around since she was a lot lighter than the rest of the guild members.

"You feelin' alright?" Gray asked, seemingly next to her out of nowhere, causing the young brunette to jump a bit in her seat, spinning around to face the raven haired male with wide eyes and a hand gently pressed to her chest over her rapidly beating heart. A slightly amused smirk graced his features at her reaction, and Kay slowly calmed down.

"Yeah. I'm feeling great!" She lied with a small giddy laugh and smile. The ice-make wizard simply raised a brow that told her that he didn't believe a lick of her act. A soft sigh left her lips, as did her fake enthusiasm. She and her little sister had been staying with Gray for the past couple of weeks, so he was fully aware of the fact that half of the time she would wake up crying or screaming from nightmares that kept on repeating themselves. Although he was supportive and reminded her that he was there if she ever wanted to confide in someone about her nightmares – albeit he said it kind of awkwardly and seemed plenty embarrassed – she didn't tell him what they were about.

They were too real for her to be able to tell anyone. How could she tell them of the horrible nightmares that she had been having for the past couple of weeks? They were terrifying. Images would jump from one scene to the other, full out wars, death of many people she loved, death of strangers she felt bonded to. Faceless men and women, scattered all over the ground, red blood coating everything in it's way, nothing left untouched. She didn't know how to explain it, nevertheless talk about it as if it were a normal kind of reoccurring nightmare.

"Okay, so maybe I'm not feeling one-hundred percent, but last night I did get some sleep, thanks to you." She admitted, cheeks turning a little pink.

As if suddenly remembering the night before, Gray's own cheeks heated up a bit, his hand raising to rub the back of his neck and his eyes sliding away from hers. "It was no problem. It's what guildmates are for." He mumbled, clearly embarrassed.

Since Kay had been having trouble sleeping, Gray had joined her and Harley in his bed (he had been kind enough to take the floor for them) and held her in his arms, keeping his body temperature cool, helping her fight the summer heat. Along with that, he had told her about the adventures he'd had with Fairy Tail and his guildmates, all while rubbing circles on her back to help her relax (something he admitted to her in the morning he had been told by Mira to do in order to comfort girls a few years ago). It had worked, and while the nightmares hadn't gone away, they were much easier to face, and much less vivid than before.

"Either way..." Kay said softly, face warm as she bit her bottom lip, glancing over to the older teenager. "Thank you."

A slightly awkward silence fell over the two just as the sound of Harley's excited squeal was heard, her little hands holding onto the cards Cana was letting her borrow, waving them around as she ran up to Kay. "Onee-chan look!" She squealed out, setting the cards in front of her older sister excitedly. There were only three of them, and while Kay didn't know how to read the cards, the symbols on them were enough to make her blood run cold.

The first card had a symbol of swords crossing, as if meeting for battle, the people holding the swords nothing but outlines of figures that Kay couldn't understand against the pale gray of the cards background. On the second card was a pair of wings, much like that on Erza's heaven's wheel armor, bright white against the blue of the background, like a pair of angel wings erupting from the clouds. The last card was the one that Kay was unsure of, with the symbol of something that looked somewhat like a gate. But what kind of gate? And where did it lead to? What was it for?

 _Cut it out, it's nothing. I'm being silly. Harley had just been messing around with cards. It's just a coincidence._ Kay told herself, and forced a small smile to her face as she looked at her sibling. "Great job, Lele. I'm so proud of you. You're such a fast learner." She giggled a little when Harley looked expectantly at Gray, waiting for the ice wizard to compliment her as well. Typical little girl to want his attention. He was the only male in the entire guild Harley was one-hundred percent comfortable with. Sure she was okay around Natsu too – only because the small blonde had taken a liking to Lucy, and since Lucy was so close to Natsu, Harley felt the need to trust him as much as she could allow herself too – she told all of that to Kay, which had made the teenager feel like she was watching her sister mature slowly, and she didn't know whether to be proud because she was getting so big or cry because her mother wasn't there to see it.

"Impressive. Do you know what they mean?" Gray asked.

"Uh..." Harley blanked and stared at the cards. "Not yet! But I'll learn eventually!" She smiled and then rushed back to Cana to practice more.

"She really likes you, y'know." Kay spoke softly as the two of them watched Harley take a seat next to Cana, looking through the cards and asking what each one meant. It was a sight Kay hadn't thought she would ever see – Harley learning magic. The girl adored it – magic – and for so long she had begged Kay to show her little parlor tricks constantly. Watching as she learned her own tricks was somewhat soothing.

"You think?" Gray still didn't understand why it was such a big deal to her that Harley liked him. If there was anyone in the guild Kay would put in charge of protecting Harley and entrusting them with her life it would be Gray. Her little sister had a tendency to be good at judging the character of people – good at telling good from evil right off the bat. It's how they were able to survive the attack on Airedella. She had sensed the bad people and their magic far before Kay or their mother had, and it had given them just enough time to escape, though they had lost their mother. And for that, Kay had gone ballistic – hence the reason the male had been so terrified of her a few weeks ago.

"Mhm." Kay nodded her head. "I think that it's amazing that she feels so comfortable around you. Most males completely terrify her, but from what Erza told me she took to you from the moment she saw you." Green eyes glanced sideways just in time to catch the hint of pink on Gray's cheeks as he turned his head away, embarrassed again. She smiled a bit softly and looked back to Harley before she sighed and stood up. "I really need to take a mission. As much as I appreciate you letting us stay with you, I need to start taking care of Harley and I on my own." She explained and then walked over to the request board, looking over the many pieces of paper with a variety of tasks and value.

Given her magical talent, she could really take on most any task, but she didn't want to alert anyone by doing anything too crazy right off the bat. So she spotted a request asking for someone to transport a mental wizard, who was to be taken to one of the hospitals for wizards who were completely bonkers, but didn't belong in a prison cell. She could handle a wonky wizard. It would be an easy enough task. And the price was fairly good too, at 50,000 Jewel as a reward. Smiling a bit, she took the request from the board and walked over to the bar counter, setting the paper down near Mira. "I'm gonna take this one, if that's alright." She said softly, barely catching the attention of the barmaid, who looked at the request and blinked in surprise.

"You're going to do a transport mission all by yourself? As your first official mission? Are you sure you don't want to take someone with you? Like Erza or Gray?" She asked.

"I can do it. Please trust me on this." Kay said quietly, eyes meeting Mira's and asking for her to not ask the questions she knew the covergirl wanted to ask.

"Alright. I'll notify them of your arrival."

"I'm leaving on the next train, so tell them I'll be there soon." Kay told Mira, nodding her head and folding the request paper up and sticking it in her pocket.

"Be safe!" Mira called out as the young wizard turned and headed towards the doors, quietly asking Gray to keep an eye on Harley for her while she was out. Of course, leaving wasn't as easy as she had hoped it would be, because Gray was following her with Harley piggybacking on his back asking why she would be going on a solo mission on her first mission – especially one that had to deal with a crazy wizard.

"...and they never said just how powerful or dangerous the wizard is, or what kind of crazy state they're in. I just don't see why you won't let me go with you." Gray was saying, going on this long speech about her being safe and being stupid for going on a mission alone.

"I need you to watch out for Harley. Besides, I can do this. Just because you saved Harley and I in Airedella, doesn't mean you know what happened for us to get in such a state or what I am capable of. I'm not a child, Gray. I need you to trust in my ability to take care of myself." Kay was more comfortable with Gray than the others in the guild like Harley was, so it was much easier for her to convey her thoughts and say things she wouldn't normally say so boldly.

"It'd be a lot easier to do that if you would let us see your magic and if you'd take off that silly cloak." Gray pointed out, sounding a little irritated with her.

"You know I can't do that.." Kay's voice dropped.

"You say that, but you don't tell any of us why. You don't tell _me_ why." Gray retorted. "If you can't then how can I be sure that you won't get killed?"

"Don't say that, Gray-sama!" Harley butted into the conversation. "Sissy can handle herself! She's really powerful, and has really pretty magic. She won't die, so don't say such horrible things!" The little girl declared, her head right next to Gray's from the way that she was being held up in a piggyback ride.

"Sorry to offend you, but can you blame me for being worried? I met you half dead from an attack and you haven't proven to be strong enough on your own." He apologized plainly, looking over at Kay as she began to pack the clothes she had been bought. Erza had taken her shopping – actually the red-head had taken Harley and Kay under her wing like her own little siblings and had tried to convince them to live with her, but Harley had refused to leave Gray so they ended up staying with him instead.

The suitcase zipped shut with a soft sound before Kay actually looked at Gray herself. Her eyes shining with determination. "Trust me, Gray-sama. Please. I can do this."

"Are you going to be able to sleep?" He shot back, looking at her with an angry expression on his face. Despite the harsh look, Kay was able to clearly read the expression – he was deeply concerned for her. The knowledge of that alone had her softening even more, a gentle sigh passing her lips as she set the suitcase down on the floor and went up to the wizard, placing her small hands on his cheeks and looking deeply into his eyes.

"Trust me." She pleaded softly before letting go and grabbing her suitcase, glancing at the time. "I have to leave. Please watch Lele for me." She asked as she headed out of the door. There wasn't a lot she asked of Gray, but this time she needed to do this. For herself. For Harley.

The train ride wasn't as bad as Kay had been expecting it to be, being all on her own and all. It was the first time she traveled by herself, but she didn't want to tell anyone that. Though constantly thinking about her sister was probably what made the trip seem so fast. She understood why Gray was worried – she heard he was the same way when Wendy wanted to take her first solo mission, and probably when Asuka would go on hers in a couple of years. Even Romeo was getting to the age of going alone, they had explained. She wasn't sure if that made her feel more exasperated or sad because she wasn't special.

In the end it didn't matter. She wasn't in love with Gray – she wouldn't risk the chance with Juvia's wrath anyways. It just worried her because of how attached Harley was to the ice-make wizard. He wouldn't be around forever. At least, Kay was aware that they couldn't rely on him for everything forever.

The time flew by, and Kay found herself standing face-to-face with the wizard she was suppose to be accompanying on the trip. She wouldn't be alone, but she would be the only one who could do anything if the whacky mage got out of hand as she would be riding in the carriage with the wizard, and a non-mage would be the one who drove the horses. At least she didn't get motion sickness like the dragonslayers did. The long trip wouldn't be so bad. Though looking at the wizard definitely had her a little on edge. His name was Zordi, and he was said to have lost his mind as if some spell took away his sanity. They weren't sure what happened to him, and Kay wasn't going to ask. His crooked, jagged grin was nothing like the goofy one Natsu always wore, and it made the young mage feel a little nervous about taking on such a mission on her own.

His white hair was poking out from underneath a bandana that he wore, which covered most of his head and made him look like one of those genies you would see in a cheesy movie about the past. Actually, the more Kay studied him, the more he did resemble a genie – if they were in raggedy old clothes and creepy all-knowing smiles on their faces. He was quite a bit older than her, too, and was probably around Macao's age, or maybe a few years older even. But he didn't seem to be all that dangerous, despite looking like he could color with crayons all day long with the way he giggled suddenly every once in a while.

"Are you sure you can handle this?" The guard asked, staring at her and probably concerned about her age and her masked magical power.

"Yes sir." She replied, trying not to sound as timid as usual. She needed to put on a confident front or they wouldn't let her do this mission. "I'm a Fairy Tail wizard, after all." She reminded him. Of course that made him mumbled a bit about the guild's reputation, but in the end he allowed her to enter the carriage and wished her luck before shutting the door and tapping on the side of the carriage, telling the driver to head off.

Being that it was fairly early in the morning, she would get back to the guild sometime in the later evening, if all went well. She glanced over to the mage, who was cuffed so that he couldn't use his magic, but they didn't want to take any chances. He only gave her a grin in return, and she felt the shudders race through her body and quickly averted her gaze, looking out towards the sky outside, taking in the scenery. They went on like that for a while, and she felt like Gray had really underestimated her ability to do such a simple task. Most of the time Zordi was just mumbling to himself with a creepy grin on his face, yellow eyes wild and wide open. Other than being out of it and really creepy, he didn't even try to attack.

"You can't avoid them, you know." He suddenly spoke up, eyes trained on Kay and a grin on his face. "The dreams you've been having. They're trying to tell you something. It's time for you to stop hiding, Miya." He chcukled out.

Not looking at the mage, Kay's eyes widened and her entire body tensed. Fear trickled through her body in a way that made her wish she was not so easily read. She slowly blinked away her shock and looked over at the mage. They'd warned her about him – saying he said all sorts of crazy things. But how in the world could he know about her dreams? And about her other nickname, the one that only her family had used. The one her mother said that her father used as a shortened version of her 'true' name. Whatever that was. She didn't even know it. Right now, the only thing that Kay knew was that this Zordi guy should not know that nickname. At all. Only Harley should have been the one to know – the only one alive to know.

"What are you talking about?" She asked timidly, hands trembling in her lap.

That same grin was plastered to his face. "They think I'm crazy because I can see things. See what most mages can't. And since it's not a magic, they got scared. Locked me up. Oh but I've heard all about you, little miss Takara." He giggled a little, a slightly wild look in his eyes. "They need your help, and you're running. You think that guild of yours can help? Oh but they can't. Your sister may not know the meaning behind the cards, but her showing them to you was no mistake." How the heck did he know this? This had to be some kind of joke. The guild was trying to mess with her, test to see if she could really handle a solo mission. Right? No... she knew better than that.

"Tell me what you know." She tried to demand, like Erza would. However, it came out more like a questioning plea than an order.

"Your father wants you. Needs you, to be more precise. And that blonde friend of yours. Lilly? Luigi? Ah.. _Lucy._ She is the one they need." His words caused the brunette to pale, eyes wide. "Ah what a wonderful day, isn't it? He wants to talk to you. He does..."

"I don't want to talk to him." Kay stated.

Her words seemed to be ignored as the mage in front of her suddenly gasped in pain, yellow eyes glowing until they began to change into a dull, throbbing blue color, looking like small blue lacrimas in his eyes, only there weren't. His entire posture changed, his creepy grin settling into a thin, serious line. "Kay." The man who spoke was not the man talking a few seconds ago. His tone was much more urgent, more serious. A comparison would be like going from Happy talking about love to Erza when something in the battle plan went wrong. "I've tried reaching you, but you've been blocking me out. Why?" He didn't sound demanding. In fact, he sounded rather calm and stoic, which scared her more than if he had been yelling.

"You're not real. Stop this. I don't want to see you." She scowled, a rare expression on her face.

The man sighed, and he went to reach for her, but the awkward position of the cuffs didn't allow him to. "We need your help, Miya."

"Don't call me that! My name isn't Miya. It's Kay." She immediately replied, shifting further away from the man. What in the world was he doing here? He shouldn't be around. For years she had gone without knowing him, but then one day that had changed when she lost control in Airedella and when they had banned magic users. He showed up in her mother first, then in Harley, and then in anyone he so chose. She had longed for it to be her imagination. Her fear. But she knew it wasn't so.

"You cannot hide from who you truly are, Miya. _What_ you are. It will be soon enough that they find out about you. Do you think they will accept you, this guild of yours? Your powers are frighteningly strong for being so young, all of that raw magic inside of you that can never go away. Using all of it was smart, but how much of that fire in your city was from you and not the other mages?" Kay tensed and tried not to think of that, because she knew what she had done.

"Why are you saying all of this? Go away." Kay felt tears prick the corners of her eyes.

The man had a sinister smile, but Kay knew it was soft for something as emotionless as him. "It is time that you stop running and prepare for battle. You must show her to the Ephilium Osphos as soon as you can, so she can learn of the truth, also. You know her fate. As you know yours. Do not hide from it, or the consequences I have shown you will be true."

"No. You're lying. You're wrong! I won't let that happen!" Kay clenched her hands in her lap and her magic began to swirl up inside of her. Outside the wind picked up, the carriage getting shaky on it's path. The ground shuddered beneath them and Kay struggled to reign herself in. She thought of anything to calm herself down. Harley. Gray. Natsu. Lucy. Fairy Tail. Watching Harley sleep in Gray's lap after convincing them to watch a movie with her. Lucy yelling at Natsu for doing something that upset her, and Natsu only grinning and laughing. Erza scaring everyone when someone messed with her cake. Mira's gentle smile and helpful advice.

Slowly, the storm brewing around her ceased, and she had herself under control. Her eyes stared at the man before her. "You did that on purpose. To see how powerful I am becoming. To see if I can do what you want me to do, because even something as divine as you cannot see through this cloak. That's what makes it special. The silver used on the back is made of the enchantments you taught me to protect myself from the divine eyes." She told him, "You won't _touch_ my guild."

"I never said I would. I am only preparing you for the battle that awaits." His smile was cruel, and then he let out a small sigh, "I suppose my time is up. Do be safe, daughter of mine."

"You're _not_ my father." Kay replied immediately, but the man was gone, and the crazy Zordi was sitting in front of her once again, wearing a grin on his face, eyes wide and leaving no trace of the stone-cold expression he had on his face a second ago.

"Well, more interesting than I thought. Hehe." The man giggled out. "I cannot wait to see how this turns out." He giggled even more and then he let out a gasp of joy as the carriage stopped. "Looks like we made it, hehe. It was nice riding with you, Princess." He let out a loud cry of laughter and Kay felt her body still trembling, though she released the breath she had been holding. She had made it through her first solo mission – even if it had been worse than she could of ever hoped. Getting beaten to death by a powerful foe sounded less painful than what she just encountered.

The carriage door was opened, and Kay got out after Zordi, and watched as the mage laughed while they led him inside. All the while he was randomly shouting out, "It's coming!" and "It is upon us! We are all doomed!" They probably thought he was crazy because he was laughing rather than terrified about the end of time. But that wasn't true. It couldn't be. And she would not take her to the Ephilium Osphos. She knew what it was – or had a good idea about it's properties – and that was just saying something bad. If she took her to it, then there was a good chance of her having the fate that he had said, and she just _couldn't_ let that happen.

She couldn't do that to the guild. To her new friends. To Harley, who just loved everyone to death. And so, she began the trip back to the guild on the train, pondering the words over and over. She wanted nothing more than to not believe him. Than to just write it off as him messing with her, and being a complete jerk. But she could _feel_ it. That brewing storm that he was speaking of. And it scared her beyond all meaning. It was coming... but could she actually do what he wanted her to do? Could she even tell her guild about it? Warning them could help them prepare, and it could possibly stop her from having to resort to the Ephilium Osphos, but with the way things seemed, there was just no avoiding it.

The walk to Gray's seemed to take forever, and Kay just didn't feel like stopping by the guild to tell them she made it back. She probably should, but she would do that tomorrow, when she felt the energy to do anything other than cry. Not wanting to just walk inside, Kay stopped at the door and knocked, working her bottom lip between her teeth and trembling in fear of her thoughts.

"Yeah, what do you wa-Kay." Gray paused mid-sentence as he caught sight of Kay. Her eyes went a little wide at what she was seeing, and she had to blink a few times to really see it. Suddenly, her dull, horrible thoughts were brushed away and she started into a fit of giggles.

In front of her, shirtless, was Gray. With the most ridiculous things in his hair. A few strands of his black hair were in tiny braids, while others were in decorative fluffy pink and purple pony-tails. To top it all off, he was wearing a rainbow colored flower crown, and stickers covered his face. Her hands were covering her mouth as she tried to stop giggling, and she felt bad when Gray let out an unappreciative noise and dragged her and her suitcase inside before shutting the door.

"This is all your fault." Gray stated.

"Mine?" Kay cried out, incredulous. What had she done?

"You left me with her." Gray pointed over to Harley, who was sleeping in his shirt – so he hadn't just stripped from habit, then – with a content smile on her face. Her blonde hair fell down her cheeks, looking peaceful. Kay smiled at the sight, and then looked back to Gray who was pulling stickers from his cheeks and tried to not laugh.

"Sorry. It looks cute, though." She tried to make him feel better, and he only gave her a look that told her she wasn't as funny as she thought she was. "Okay, okay!" She laughed softly, smiling. "C'mere. I'll take all of that stuff out of your hair." She walked into the kitchen and hopped up on the table, sitting down to give her some height so that she could easily reach Gray's hair. He followed her after taking his eyes off of Harley and raised a brow at her sitting but didn't say anything, and instead just walked over to her and stood in front of her, her legs on either side of him as she had to scoot closer to reach his hair.

"So your mission went well?" Gray asked after a few seconds of silence.

"Wh-what?" Kay tensed a bit when he asked about her mission, but then realized he knew nothing and let out a nervous laugh. "Yeah. Fine. The wizard was just really silly, talking about all sorts of stuff that didn't make sense." She replied, not exactly telling the truth. Her hands stayed steady as they gentle undid the braids placed in his hair after having taken off the flower crown. She began to softly tug the ponytails out of his hair and brushed her fingers through it a few times to see if she could find any other hair accessory hidden inside – Harley liked to play with hair.

When she was done, Gray pulled his head up and met her gaze, raising a brow. "You sure you're alright? Between the nightmares and how your acting, you seem a little tense." She hated how easily she was read by people.

"Y-Yeah. I'm fine." She found it hard to lie when she was staring into his serious, dark blue eyes.

"Kay..." Gray's voice held a tone she knew all too well.

"Okay, I'm not fine. But I don't want to talk about it."

"I think you have to."

"Why?" Kay asked, looking at Gray and suddenly feeling really scared.

"Because keeping it to yourself is stressing you out." Gray answered, reaching up and flicking her in the forehead. "Don't be stupid, Kay. Let us in. Let me in." He said softly. She let out a soft sigh at his tone and then she slowly nodded her head, still unsure about this.

"O-Okay.." Kay replied, shifting a little and feeling quite uncomfortable. How in the world was she going to explain everything to Gray? Maybe she should only tell him about the nightmares. He would stop asking if she only told him that, right? Right. He would. After hearing her tell him about her nightmares, he would stop asking. So then she wouldn't need to tell him about her magic and about the mission and about the message she had received about the Ephilum Osphos. Right? Yeah... but she would feel guilty if she didn't tell him.

"How about we put Harley into bed, and then you can tell me everything going on that pretty little head of yours, yeah?" He suggested casually, pulling away from Kay and walking into the living room, gently picking Harley up. Just watching him made Kay feel like melting. It was such a rare and sweet sight, seeing Harley perfectly content in his arms and snuggling against his bare chest a bit, and the extremely gentle and careful way that Gray handled her and carried her into his room. Shaking her head, Kay began to think of how she was going to tell him. It was not going to be easy. And she couldn't tell him everything. It was much too soon. And he would hate her. And she couldn't risk that because of Harley.

"So, you ready to talk?" Gray asked when he came back into the living room, taking a seat on the couch next to Kay, body completely relaxed and comfortable contrasting to her tense and uncomfortable posture.

"Y-yeah... I'll tell you..." Kay said softly, trembling as she met Gray's gaze and opened her mouth to speak, to explain her dream, to explain what he wanted to know.


	5. Chapter 4

Hello, hello, hello! Welcome back to today's chapter of The Celestial Warrior. Last chapter was crazy, this chapter will be even more crazy (actually, not really), and next chapter is to be determined!

 **Chapter 4:**

Gray blinked, looking at Kay for a moment strangely. There was no way what she told him that night was true. She was someone who needed to be protected – granted they were on their way to prove whether or not she was lying at the moment – but in his eyes she was just a girl who needed him to keep her safe. How could any of it be true? If she really had been the reason Airedella stopped allowing magic users inside their city limits, how in the world did she manage all those years under their radars? And on top of that, Lucy had told them that a powerful wizard had attacked the city – a well-known wizard that went by the name of many, the most famous being the Angel of Death because their magic was unparalleled. But no one ever had any evidence of actually seeing this wizard, and age and gender had never been known.

If she weren't lying, then that meant she was around eight when she lost control. An eight year old girl with such powerful, raw magic? It was unheard of. But Gray found it hard to not believe her, with how nervously she had told him, as if he would suddenly freeze her in ice and turn her into the Magic Council. And to be honest, a part of him wanted to. However, she was now a guildmate, and Fairy Tail would make an enemy of the world to protect it's nakama – including Kay and Harley in their new family. Besides, someone could have tampered with her memories, made her forget who she really was. Having such raw power as a child was unheard of and not normal.

He shifted his weight in the seat of the train to get more comfortable, being careful because of the sleeping girl on him. And it wasn't Harley this time. The little blonde had so much energy he had to keep reminding her to keep her tone down because her sister was sleeping. His dark blue eyes glanced down to look at Kay's sleeping figure. She'd fallen asleep against the window of the train, looking out at all of the scenery as the sun rose up – judging by being awoken to her sobs she didn't get much sleep - but when Gray watched her head continuously bump against the window he cringed and had eased her towards him. He might not be the warmest person on Earthland sometimes, but he was definitely more comfortable than the window.

One arm was slung around her back, her body curled up into his side with her back facing the seats opposite of them and her small hands resting between their bodies, holding onto his shirt with cold fingers. Her cheek pressed against his chest, right above where her hands rested. How in the world could any of what she told him be real? He didn't want to believe she'd lie to him, but he didn't want to think she had such a dark past full of loneliness and responsibility at a young age, either.

 _ **Flashback**_

" _So are you going to tell me what this is all about?" Gray asked, looking down at Kay who wasn't looking at him but rather at her hands trembling in her lap. "Has something bad happened?" He pressed, a little more urgently._

" _Yes... and it's so horrible..." Her voice had barely reached his ears, but the raw emotion in her tone caused him to tense, even more worried than he'd been before._

" _Kay, what happened?" He pressed, not wanting to force her to talk about something if it made her that uncomfortable, but too worried about her safety to really think about how hard it was for her to be sharing something to him. With the way she kept avoiding his gaze, he figured it had to be pretty terrible._

" _Gray... have you heard of the Angel of Death?" Kay's voice was so soft, Gray had to lean closer to hear what she was saying. Slowly, her green-blue eyes met his, ringed with a shade of dark gray and flecked with gold. He'd never seen her eyes so closely before, and now he was trying not to recognize the pure pain held within them. She looked so scared, so child-like. Nothing like the mature girl he knew she was._

" _Of course." He kept his reply simple, to encourage her to explain herself._

" _I know it's going to sound crazy, and hard to believe, but I am the Angel of Death. The Reaper. The Time-Lord. All of those names always lead to one person. And I am that person." Kay's throat bobbed as she was clearly trying to figure out how to word her sentences. "I was almost nine when I lost control in Airedella. I got angry because everyone in the town was saying horrible things about my mother. Because she had me, and then she was pregnant with Harley and the man who was her father abused her. He was a horrible man. I could not stand seeing him hurt my mother as he had done, and since my mother kept me from stopping him, my anger grew. I-I was so angry. So full of-of rage. I lost control of my magic, and I tore the city apart. I stopped only when I passed out in the middle of the chaos and the mess, and my tantrum put fear and despair into the hearts of everyone. My mother knew what happened, and she didn't blame me, but everyone who saw me in that form blamed and feared me. They banned magic, but my mother didn't have enough money to move us, so I got a necklace to cloak my magic power._

" _In all honesty, I should have turned myself in. Told them who I was and paid the price. But the fact that I was only 8 would scare them more, or that's what my mother told me. Harley had never feared me though even when her father tried to beat it into her that I was a monster. Thinking if he got her to believe it when she was older, that everyone else would and they'd send me packing or to my death. No one believed him, though, and eventually he got locked away for being insane and for beating my sister and my mother. He was too scared of me to touch me, though." Just the mere thought of a man beating up the sweet blonde child had Gray's cool slipping, his own temper rising. He was just glad the guy hadn't touched Kay, because if he had touched her too, Gray would have had to go find the guy and give him a proper beating. Though hitting sweet little Harley was enough to warrant the guy's immediate death, anyways._

" _Kay..." Gray was at a loss for words. Anything that he wanted to say wasn't coming out, or it sounded wrong after the words ran through his head. He noticed the silver in her eyes before she turned away, too quick for her to hide it. Without even thinking, his hands reached out and tugged on her small body, moving her with ease onto his lap, and wrapping his arms around her slim frame. It was kind of like all of those times he'd seen the others in the guild comforting girls all coming together. Her sadness was killing him, because he could sense the fear radiating off of her body, as if she thought he'd truly hate her after telling him what had happened to her. She couldn't control her magic. It wasn't her fault. And she didn't know that and he hated it. Hated that she felt so upset. Nakama didn't need to feel so upset. "If you don't want to continue, you don't have to.." He added, not wanting her to keep crying over what she'd been through._

 _ **End Flashback**_

In the end, she had told him what he assumed was everything. It was hard for him to accept what had happened to her in the carriage, but the way she seemed to relax after she told him everything had him glad she felt comfortable enough to share such deep secrets with him. The way that she had slept now without looking like the weight of the world was on her shoulders made him smile. He was so glad that she was so comfortable sleeping with him around. The trust she had to of placed in him to feel at ease was good, because Fairy Tail ran on pure trust in their guildmates.

"...and so then Kay did this cool thing and she fixed my toy by making time slow back for the toy and it was really cool, but she passed out after fixing it because that magic of hers takes a lot of energy, BUT THIS ONE TIME..." Harley was going on and on about all of the different types of magic that Kay used. The fact that she had been able to keep it a secret for so long too was rather impressive, considering she was a five year old little girl who liked to talk, but after she found out Kay told Gray everything, she had happily begun to tell him all sorts of stories. It was strange, to think that sweet innocent Kay was someone who held such raw power, but she still hadn't taken off her cloak to show him her power and he wasn't the type of person to try to take it off while she was sleeping. So, now they were on their way to a desolate place in order for Kay to reveal her magic to him.

By the time they'd gotten to the plain grassland, the sun was beating down upon them, its rays unforgiving and hot. While the cold didn't bother Gray, the heat was a little bit of a different story, as sweat was dripping from his face, and before he even realized it, his shirt was off and thrown into the field nowhere to be seen. He was in the middle of freaking out when a wave or pure magic energy hit him, and his eyes immediately snapped around to figure out where the threat was. "Kay someone is here we need to get you..." He trailed off as he saw her.

Kay's cloak was folded and in her arms, her gaze nervously meeting his own and lip trapped between her teeth. Her body swayed back and forth slightly, and it took Gray a moment to process the power that was being emitted came from the small brunette. "This is you?" He asked in disbelief, feeling shocked. She hadn't been exaggerating when she said it was not safe to take off her cloak. Taking off that cloak with such power being shot out from her body in massive, overwhelming waves, would terrify everyone around. Her blush and shy nod was enough to realize she was self-conscious about her magic. "Show me?" He asked, swallowing.

"O-Okay. Sure." Her chest rose and fell as she took a steadying breath, eyes closing. It was intriguing to watch as she focused, eyes opening and shining briefly. "Battle Armor, Heavenly Princess." The words were barely uttered, but Gray heard them, and watched as a bright light erupted around Kay, consuming her whole. Next to him, Harley was smiling excitedly as if watching her favorite movie. The small girl squealed in excitement when the light faded away and revealed a beautiful young woman who looked nothing like Kay.

Light, dirty blonde locks framed her soft-looking face. Green eyes were replaced with gleaming red eyes, a small bronze crown atop her head. White wings sprouted from her back, sending the hot air rushing through his hair. The surprise was evident on his face, he knew that much. How could Kay become someone else entirely? Her appearance, her expression, her body shape. Her armor. There was no evidence of Kay Takara left in front of him. "This is my Heavenly Princess Battle Armor. I use swords to fight in this, but my speed and agility as well as power is enhanced." She said, her voice sharp and terrifyingly sweet. Something that sent shivers down his spine while simultaneously drawing him into her. **A/N:** Link to image here: .

"You might want to put your cloak back on. I didn't think the power would be such a beacon but I bet people can feel it in town as well." Gray could only say, and he watched Kay nod a tiny bit before a flash of light momentarily blinded him. Once the light went away, Kay was back in the spot she'd been in, her cloak around her body and masking the magical energy she'd just radiated to everything around them.

"Now you know. I don't know why I'm like this, and I don't want this power, but I was born with it." Well, he figured that much from what she had told him. However, Gray wasn't sure if that was the full of it or not, because she clearly knew something. The other day her mission had freaked her out more than it should have when she claimed it went without a hitch. Kay's name was already being whispered around town, as the only one in Fairy Tail who hadn't caused destruction after finishing a mission. Though he knew she didn't agree after what she had told him the night before. She didn't believe she was good.

"C'mon now, don't say that." Gray replied, rubbing the back of his neck He opened his mouth to say something else, only for him to sense a magic energy that suddenly appeared and shoved him to the ground. "Gah!" He groaned and looked for the source, finding a grinning man with red hair and matching eyes.

"I finally found you little Miya. You can't hide from your Uncle Luci anymore!" The guy was looking right at Kay, and completely ignoring Gray and Harley. "You're just as stunning as I always imagined you would be. You do take after your mother don't you? Oh and that magic I jut felt – just like your father's! I am definitely looking forward to watching you grow in strength." He was so casual that he didn't appear to be a threat, but Gray wasn't buying it for one second.

Kay was staring at the guy with a wide-eyed, scared facial expression. She took a step back, but one flick of the guys wrist and she was pulled close to him. "Awe don't run away from me, my darling niece. That's not nice at all. I'm just coming to say hello." He had his hand under her chin, gently forcing her to look up at him. The way he was holding her was much more romantic that need be. "I'm also warning you, when the time comes, and you know it will, join my side. It'll be much safer, and I'll promise the protection of all your little guild friends."

Harley was staring at the guy with a look of awe before she sauntered up over to him and her sister. "Excuse me, Uncle Luci?" She asked, tugging on the tail of his black coat. "You're scaring sissy. Please come back some other time, okay?" She gave him a smile, and the red haired man let go of Kay and lifted up the blonde with ease. Harley was the only one not confused, and she was actually pleased to see the man – or it seemed. "It's too soon for sissy. I know you said she needs to know, but it's too soon. She's still scared." She sounded much too mature for her age, and it worried Gray.

"It appears you're right my little Lilly. I shall come back another time. Until then, should I erase all accounts of this?" He asked Harley, who shook her head no. "Alright, I shall be going then. Be safe my little Lilly, and remember what I said, Miya." He seemed to disappear into thin air, and Gray quickly pushed himself to his feet. The magic the man had used was extremely overpowering, more-so than Kay's, but it wasn't emitting from him like it had with Kay. That wasn't one of his questions, though. How did Harley know the guy? And why did he call Kay by the name of Miya?


End file.
